


of cake and courtship

by asael



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Birthday, Fluff, M/M, Pre-Timeskip | Academy Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-24
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:47:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25488703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asael/pseuds/asael
Summary: Claude's birthday is full of surprises, not the least of which is realizing all the friends he's made - and that for some, it may not be just friendship.
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Claude von Riegan
Comments: 32
Kudos: 174





	of cake and courtship

**Author's Note:**

> Happy birthday to the cleverest and most beautiful boy in the world. ♥ I only have a small offering, but my love is boundless. (Maybe not as boundless as Dimitri's.)

Claude hadn’t been expecting flowers, but Professor Byleth always seemed to surprise him.

“For you,” they said, unblinking in that odd way they had, and Claude could do nothing but laugh and accept them.

“Hey, thanks,” he said. He wasn’t sure what to do with them, not since class was supposed to start in a few minutes, but he supposed the worst thing that could happen was that Hilda would tease him.

Byleth nodded, serious. “Happy birthday.”

“Claude, it’s your birthday?” Dimitri stood by the entrance to the Blue Lions classroom, not far away. He hadn’t been there a moment ago, but then, he was the sort of person who was always on time for class.

“It is,” Claude said, and grinned at him. Dimitri looked genuinely surprised by the knowledge, as if perhaps he’d imagined Claude had sprung fully formed from a chasm somewhere and not been born and raised like anyone. “I actually didn’t think that Teach knew.”

“I saw it in your file,” Byleth said.

“I was not aware,” said Dimitri. “My apologies. Happy birthday, Claude.”

Claude waved it off, letting his amusement show. “I didn’t expect you to know either, Your Princeliness. But hey, thanks for the greeting.” He leveled a grin at Dimitri, and was on some level pleased to see the tips of Dimitri’s ears go just a bit pink.

“Time for class,” Byleth said decisively, and just then the churchbells began to ring. That was impossible to argue with, and so Claude waved them both goodbye and headed off to the Golden Deer classroom, hands full of flowers, expecting that to be the end of it.

Naturally, it wasn’t.

The day went normally, class and archery practice and a faith lesson that didn’t go well at all. Claude hadn’t really intended to do anything for his birthday - after all, it wasn’t easy to plan something when he had so much else on his mind, and they’d only been at school together for a few months. He didn’t know anyone _that_ well.

But when he rose to leave the classroom, intending to grab something from the dining hall and then spend a few hours combing through the library, Hilda reached out and caught his sleeve.

“Where do you think you’re going?” She pouted at him, an impressive weapon that nonetheless had little effect on Claude. “It’s time to party!”

Claude blinked at her. “It’s what?”

“Time to party!” Raphael said with a grin. “Hilda told us your birthday was comin’ up, so we made some plans.”

He hadn’t told Hilda about his birthday, which raised the question of how she’d found out, but… well, it wasn’t like it was a big secret or anything. He’d figure out the answer to that later, and if she’d discovered anything else about him. For now, Claude had to admit he was pleased.

“I can’t turn down a party,” he said, with a smile that he was a tiny bit surprised to discover was entirely genuine.

“Good!” Leonie said, and clapped him on the shoulder, grinning. “Come on, we’ve got it all ready.”

Claude allowed her to drag him off, the rest of the Golden Deer following. There was a part of him, something buried deep down, that tried to tell him this was a trap. That it wasn’t real, that he should be careful, that he couldn’t trust any of it.

But while Claude might not have known his classmates for that long, he knew that wasn’t true. It was nothing more than paranoia, the relics of a childhood where he’d had to look over his shoulder constantly. Of course he still needed to be careful here, of course he couldn’t let down his guard. But… just for now, at least, he was pretty sure that it would be all right to go along with what his friends wanted.

His friends, huh? What a thought.

Leonie led him to one of the courtyards. It was a nice day, barely a cloud in the sky, and the space was somewhat haphazardly decorated with a Golden Deer banner (stolen from the classroom, probably), a few vases of flowers, and some yellow streamers. A couple of tables had been set up, food piled high on them.

“Happy birthday, Claude,” Marianne said with a shy smile, ushering him in. “We, um. We wanted to be sure it didn’t pass without notice.”

“We wanted an excuse for a party,” Hilda said, and winked at him. “It just so happens that our fearless leader’s birthday is a great excuse.”

“We weren’t really sure about gifts and everything,” Ignatz said, shifting in place. “But maybe a party will be better than a lot of stuff that you won’t use?”

Claude thought that really meant they hadn’t known what to get him, but he couldn’t take offense to it. After all, he tried his best to keep people from discovering too much about what he was really interested in - so how could he blame them for not being sure? Besides, this alone was far more than he’d expected.

“Thanks,” he said, and let himself smile at them, a real one. He could not quite put words to the emotions he was feeling, but if he were being honest, he couldn’t remember the last time anyone had done something like this. There was no way he was going to forget it. “This is… well, it’s really nice.” He cleared his throat and brightened his smile. “Let’s eat!”

Most of his Golden Deer needed no more encouragement than that. They set on the food like a band of starving animals, and for a moment all Claude wanted to do was watch them.

His friends. What an odd thing, to think of them that way after so long without, but it came easily.

Hilda took his arm and grinned up at him. “Not too bad, is it?”

Lorenz, nearby, crossed his arms and sniffed. “Don’t allow her to fool you into thinking this is all her doing,” he said. “Ignatz took care of the decorations, and Marianne brought the flowers. Raphael and Leonie took charge of the food, naturally, so you will find quite a number of meat-based dishes. Lysithea procured a cake for us - it seems that she has very strong opinions on what is appropriate. And of course, I provided the tea.” He raised his chin, looking awfully proud of himself. “You’ll find that it’s of the finest quality, and perfectly made. Be certain you have a cup, Claude.”

Claude didn’t bother to hold back his laughter, but for once Lorenz seemed to take it at face value: amusement, not mockery. “I’ll have some for sure. And Hilda did nothing, is that right?”

“Not a thing,” Hilda said, glowing with her own particular brand of pride.

“Just what I’d expect,” Claude said. “And you didn’t come up with the idea or tell anyone what to do, right?”

“Ugh, _Claude_ ,” Hilda rolled her eyes, “of course I encouraged everyone, and maybe even did a _little_ organizing! But don’t make it sound like work. Then everyone will get the wrong idea.”

Claude shook his head, laughing. “Right, right. Silly me. Make sure whoever _did_ do that part of the work gets my thanks, though, okay?”

Hilda shoved him at the food. Small as she was, she was strong enough to wield that axe of hers without breaking a sweat, and her shove sent Claude stumbling forward. “Go eat some food, birthday boy.” Next to her, Lorenz was smiling, and Claude really didn’t care whether it was at his expense or not.

It was… really nice, either way.

He wasn’t going to waste the opportunity or anyone’s hard work. Claude put on his best party face and made the rounds. The food was great, and Leonie was happy to point out her favorite dishes - Raphael, on the other hand, just shrugged and told him he should eat whatever he liked best, as long as he ate a lot of it. Marianne turned a deep red when he complimented her flowers, and Ignatz - well, Claude decided not to interrupt him. He’d found a spot in the corner for himself and was intently sketching, and when Claude managed to sneak a peek, he saw the messy outlines of the scene in that garden.

He backed off quietly and headed for the table with the cake, Lysithea glowering nearby.

“Hey, that looks great!”

“It’s from the best bakery in town,” Lysithea said, drawing herself up to her full height. Cute. 

“Huh,” Claude said, “the best? I didn’t even know there was more than one.”

Her look of mingled horror and disgust at his ignorance about bakeries was totally worth it. With short, sharp movements, she dumped a piece of cake on a plate and shoved it at him. “Educate yourself, then.”

He grinned, not bothering to hide his amusement, which only annoyed Lysithea more. But Claude had to admit, once he’d taken a bite of the cake, that it was really something. It was foreign but familiar, the flavors of it combining to make something that tugged at his heartstrings in an entirely unexpected way.

Claude found himself staring down at the cake for a long moment. He gathered his composure, smoothed his face away from whatever too-open expression it had been making, and slapped on a smile instead.

“Wow!” he said, eyes on Lysithea. She didn’t seem to have caught his lapse, thankfully. “What’s in this? It’s great!”

The look of suppressed pride on her face turned his smile into something much more real. “Lorenz told me you like that Almyran pine needle tea, so I asked them to make something with Almyran spices. I thought it might be different - something new. It turned out nice, didn’t it?”

“It did,” Claude said, and this time there was absolutely nothing but honesty in his words. It didn’t taste like anything he would have eaten in Almyra, the cake itself too light and airy, but the flavors reminded him so much of home. For a moment he allowed himself to miss it desperately - the warm winds, the open plains, the sky above. Then he took a breath and put that all away, pulling himself back to where he was, to the monastery and all of his friends. “Thank you, Lysithea.”

She frowned now, her cheeks the bright pink they always turned when she was happily embarrassed. “At least you’re properly appreciating it.”

“I wouldn’t dream of doing anything else.” 

“Claude,” someone said from behind him, hesitant and polite. Claude turned.

“Your Princeliness,” he said, now surprised again by the sudden appearance of Dimitri. He definitely hadn’t been there when the Golden Deer brought Claude, but now here he was, looking awkward and stiff and entirely out of his element. “I didn’t know you were coming.”

“Ah, no,” Dimitri said, and the tips of his ears were adorably pink again, just as they had been that morning. “I wasn’t invited - I’m afraid I didn’t even know there was a celebration. I simply came looking for you, and found this.”

Claude glanced around, seeing his friends occupied with eating and talking and enjoying themselves - all save for Hilda, who raised her eyebrows at him and grinned, but made no move to interfere. “Looking for me, huh? Well, here I am! What’s going on?”

“I - wanted to give you something. A gift.” Dimitri was so carefully polite, not quite meeting Claude’s eyes. Was he nervous? Claude wasn’t sure what to read into that, just as he wasn’t sure what to read into the mention of a gift. 

“You don’t need to give me anything,” he said, maintaining his smile even while his heart seemed to be beating rather harder than usual. “You didn’t even know it was my birthday.”

“If I had known, I would have prepared better,” said Dimitri. He straightened his back and held out a book-shaped package, neatly wrapped and tied with twine. “I - hope that you like it.”

There was nothing for Claude to do but accept the gift. Their hands brushed as he took it from Dimitri, and ridiculously, Claude felt his face get hot. It shouldn’t have mattered - not that Dimitri had gotten him a gift on such short notice, not that he’d searched for Claude to give it to him, not that he was looking at Claude in a way that Claude could not at all read.

It shouldn’t have mattered, but Claude’s composure was shaken.

He unwrapped the gift. A book, as had been clear from the package, but - such a lovely one. The cover was a deep blue, delicately embossed in gold, and when Claude opened it he saw the title. _Myths and Legends of Faerghus._ It was beautifully illustrated, a true work of art, and just flipping through it made Claude ache to find a quiet corner somewhere, curl up, and spend a few hours reading.

He raised his head from the book, looking at Dimitri in wonder, and was rewarded by the sight of the prince going _quite_ pink.

“I have often seen you in the library,” he said, shifting in place for a moment before stilling himself. “I thought you might enjoy something like this, and there was, ah, a bookseller with the merchants today - it was simply luck that they had something appropriate as a gift.” Dimitri paused for a moment. “Happy birthday, Claude.”

Claude smiled at him then, a real and true thing, because Dimitri deserved at least that much from him. “Thanks, Dimitri. You really didn’t have to, but I’m not gonna turn down something this nice.” He held the book gently, mind already spinning, wondering what it meant. Why he wanted it to mean something. “And - hey. Since this is my party, why don’t you stick around?”

“I wasn’t invited -”

“I’m inviting you now,” Claude said, cheeky and grinning, and something about Dimitri’s gaze softened. “Why don’t you get some tea? I’ll find somewhere safe to put this and come join you.”

“If it’s truly all right,” Dimitri said, and that was all it took. He inclined his head to Claude, something like a bow, and headed for Lorenz and his tea set - ears still a very sweet pink.

“Oh _Claude_ ,” Hilda said with a sigh. She stepped close for only a moment, only long enough to lean in and whisper in his ear. “There’s no bookseller today. I wonder how long he’s been holding onto that, looking for a good chance to give it to you?”

Claude didn’t say anything, but something warm in his chest began to grow. Hilda elbowed him.

“You could do worse than being courted by a prince,” she said, and winked, and headed off to tease Marianne.

Claude watched Dimitri across the courtyard, watched his strong shoulders and his upright posture, the way his hair glinted in the sun, the politeness he greeted Lorenz with. He thought of the look in Dimitri’s eyes when he’d held out the gift, the flush of his cheeks, how his lips had looked so, so soft.

Yes. He could certainly do a lot worse.


End file.
